• Nutritional labeling of wines. Yes, you read that right -- just like peanut butter, potato chips and soft drinks. The federal agency that regulates wine wants to add serving facts, which will require information about serving size, number of servings per container, calorie, carbohydrate, protein and fat content. The wine industry isn't thrilled, since nutritional labeling adds cost to the product, and makes it less aesthetically appealing. The image above is a sample, taken from the Federal Register, which seems harmless enough. But smaller wineries, especially regional ones, will probably struggle to meet the requirements. It's one thing, with economies of scale, to put the label on tens of thousands of bottle. It's another to do it when you produce just a couple of thousand bottles.
• Vintners Hall of Fame. Ernest and Julio Gallo (E&J Gallo Winery), Paul Draper (Ridge Vineyards), Milijenko “Mike” Grgich (Grgich Hills) and Sacramento wine merchant Darryl Corti will be inducted into the hall, sponsored by the Culinary Institute of America's Greystone campus. Also named as Pioneers are the founders of three of California's most historically important wineries: John Daniel (Inglenook); Louis P. Martini (Louis M. Martini Winery); and Carl Wente (Wente Vineyards). It's especially heartening to see Draper's name on the list. Ridge is among the finest U.S. wineries, and has constantly strived to make zinfandel a socially acceptable grape in a world of cabernet and merlot snobs..
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